Castillo swept his fight against Renzo Gracie student John Cholish on all three judges’ cards

The UFC on FOX 3 preliminary fight took place at IZOD Center in East Rutherford, N.J. It aired on FUEL TV following a two-bout Facebook stream and prior to the evening’s FOX-broadcast main card.

The opening round was a tightly-contested affair, with the two fighters largely nullifying each other in the wrestling department. Castillo looked sharper in the boxing department, landing a few more powershots along the way, but neither fighters was able to wobble the other. Cholish made one major mistake, slipping to the floor on a leaping kick and allowing Castillo to latch onto his neck, but he pulled free before suffering any real consequence.

Cholish picked up the pace in the second, scoring an early takedown, but Castillo quickly worked back to his feet before taking any damage. Cholish continued to confuse on the outside, switching stances and firing jabs, but Castillo answered back with right hands to the head and body. The crowd became restless as the pair looked for openings, but the fighters stayed true to their gameplans and technical approach. Castillo’s improved boxing continued to earn points, and a big slam at the end put an exclamation mark on the frame.

Castillo earned a takedown in the early moments of the final frame, but Cholish worked quickly back to his feet. Cholish then looked to drop down for a leg, but Castillo defended and pulled free. With the grappling stalemate, the two continued to box it out for the remainder of the fight, with each favoring single shots over sustained combinations. Cholish again looked for the leg in the closing seconds, but he slipped off and Castillo finished on top.

In the end, it was enough for Castillo to claim all three rounds.

“It’s always great to get a win,” he said. “It wasn’t my best performance, but I’ve been working hard in the gym. I should be knocking guys out, but for some reason I’m not. My next fight will hopefully get me one step closer to the strap, but I’ve got a lot of work to do. I’m not young anymore, and I’ve got to start working harder and start getting these finishes again.”

With the win, Castillo (14-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC) is now 6-1 in his past seven fights. Cholish sees an eight-fight win streak snapped.

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